Get Back Home
by LivinLovinLife99
Summary: Branch is having trouble adjusting to living perpetually happy. Poppy tries to help, but things start to go wrong.
1. Chapter 1

Branch's POV

I wake up in my cozy pod, back on the Troll tree. We all moved back here after the Bergens signed a peace treaty with us and promised not to eat us anymore. All the old pods that weren't destroyed when we escaped are still here, which means that Poppy is living in her old baby pod – with some renovations, of course.

I remember how hard I had to fight to get this space on the tree, the one right next to her. Every single male troll between the ages of 15 and 25 fought me for it, but they backed off when they remembered that she said she loves me. They're trolls after all. They can't stand to make anyone unhappy, and I'd be much more than unhappy without Poppy.

A few months ago, Creek tried to come back and get in Poppy's good graces again, but for once, she wasn't willing to give a second chance. He wouldn't give up and tried to get rid of me by luring me to Chef, who wanted one last chance at happiness (by eating me). I escaped with some of Poppy's friends (I guess they're my friends too now), and we came back to the tree, where things have been fine ever since.

Well, almost fine.

I wake up and see everything I need to put away. All the books about two trolls falling in love that I used to cope with the love I felt and thought was unrequited. All the invitations she sent me and I never said yes to because I thought no one would like me. All the journals I've filled up writing about her, all the songs I wrote but never sang so I wouldn't hurt anyone else. I've never loved anyone else.

Every night, I read it again. I don't know why – it only makes my heart ache more for her. Ever since I told her the truth, that I've loved her since I was five, I've been trying to figure out what to do. We've done almost nothing since then. No dates, no kisses – no more than hugs. Everyone knows we love each other, but they won't give us space.

Poppy's painfully busy. As the new queen, she's in charge of easing all the trolls into the new relationships with the Bergens, which isn't an easy task. Some of the trolls are still afraid of them, and won't leave our tree. Some of the Bergens still haven't overcome their urge to eat us, but Poppy and King Gristle are working hard to make peace.

I've tried to help her, but she won't hear of it. She's positive she can do it all by herself. I've always been annoyed by her perpetual happiness, but it's for a different reason now.

I love Poppy for who she is, the happy, bubbly, pink princess (well, queen now, I suppose) we all know. I just wish she wouldn't be so optimistic all the time because I don't want her to get hurt when she gets let down. I still believe in what I said on our trip to Bergen town – bad things happen and you can't change that.

I don't want her to be so sure she can do it all that she overworks herself and collapses with a mental breakdown.

I wish she would ask for help once in a while.

I wish she'd ask me.

I start sorting out the huge pile of Poppy-related items on the floor and putting them into my safe. I've never gotten over what happened when those nosy trolls found my poetry in my old bunker when I left to save Poppy. Luckily (maybe unluckily?), they only found the stuff I wrote when I was around five. It's the cheesiest stuff ever, and people wouldn't stop quoting it every single time I walked by for two weeks.

 _Roses are pink like you_

 _Violets are blue like me_

 _This is most surely a sign_

 _That we're absolutely meant to be_

Just as I finish cleaning up, there's a knock on the door. "Who is it?" I call. Not that I have to. Poppy's the only one who comes to visit. The other trolls are trying, but they're still getting used to me. Heck, I'm still getting used to me. Being happy is a pleasant change in my life, but it'll be a while before I start coming to each and every party that Poppy throws. But at least I'm trying.

"It's Poppy!" she shouts. "I've got some news!" I enter the combination to all three locks on my door and let her in. "OMG, Branch! Aren't you soooo excited?" "About what?" I ask. "Wait, you haven't heard?" "Heard what?" She takes a deep breath and says, "Since the work of being queen and creating new laws and presenting them to the Bergens to be approved and approving their presented laws AND planning the first peace party with them is too much for me to handle according to my father, he's decided to make a Troll council to come up with good ideas for laws and meet with the Bergens to discuss them." "And?" I ask. "And YOU'RE ON IT!" She shouts at the top of her lungs.

"What? Why?" "What do you mean why? You're great at this stuff. You know everything there is to know about Bergens. You can negotiate with them. You're calm and focused and smart and handsome –" She stops and blushes until she's as red as DJ Suki. "Poppy, I just don't know. Everyone else on the council will hate me, and I don't know if I'm ready to work with the Bergens yet." She's clearly offended. "No one hates you, Branch. They'd talk to you if you would ever come out of your pod. And if you're not ready now, when will you be?"

I sigh. "Ok. I'll be on the council." "Yay! I am so glad you decided to do this. We could really use your help!" "Goodbye, Poppy." She shuts the door on her way out and starts singing.

I sigh again. What have I done?

* * *

Author's Notes

Hey guys! This is my first fanfic, I hope you like it! If you have any suggestions, please let me know. I should upload the next chapter in about a week, suggestions are allowed, but I may not be able to follow them.


	2. Chapter 2

Poppy's POV

After a good day's work, I'm exhausted. I've been running back and forth all day between King Gristle's palace and the party planning center and the newly made law book, trying to get as much stuff done as I possibly can, so that tomorrow will be a little easier.

I was only pretending to be cheery when I went to see Branch, but I am a very good pretender. As I lay on my bed in my pod (painted bright pink, of course) I realize that I haven't been this tired since I was on my adventure to save Cooper, Smidge, Fuzzbert, Satin, Chenille, Biggie, Suki and Guy Diamond. NOT Creek. I never walked a single step to save that lying, cowardly traitor. Not one single step. I remember being so hot, cold, itchy, and terrified all at the same time that I almost wanted Chef to catch me. It was the worst experience of my life, but I did it all for my friends. NOT CREEK.

I sigh. Who am I kidding? Most of it was for Creek. I loved him. I thought he loved me – you know, as more than friends. How could I have been so blind? Branch was right. I have horrible judgement. I should have known that there's more than cupcakes and rainbows out there. I don't deserve to be queen.

I open my eyes and look in the mirror on my wall. I almost want to cry. I'm gray from head to toe. Only my hair and eyes have stayed pink. This is the third time I've lost my color since Trollstice almost happened. Both times before, Branch helped me back to normal. He told me I was an amazing leader and I had learned from my mistakes. He said that I was the only reason that he didn't lose hope when everyone else did.

I try to tell myself this, but I don't believe it.

There's only one person who can help me now. The same person who helped me the very first time I lost color. My father comforted me as I cried when I remembered how my mother had died. He helped me come to closure then. I hope he can help me come to closure with this. I try to make myself look a little peppier. After all, I'm going to see King Peppy.

I uncover the hole under my bed. It's an entrance to the secret tunnels inside the tree. No one's used them since we left, and I hope no one is in them now. I drop myself down into the musty, dark, moist passageway and begin walking in the direction of my father's pod, hoping that he's there.

* * *

When he sees me climb up through the living room floor, he gasps. "How…" he whispers. "How did my little happy, bubbly, beautiful princess become… sad?" "I throw myself into his arms and cry into his shoulder. He tells me exactly what I need to hear, and somehow, he comforts me in a way that only a father could.

When I finally realize that things will be okay, I take a deep breath and tell him about how busy I am. "This is exactly why I made the new council," he says. "Once they get into action, you'll have about half as much work, and hopefully not as many worries." "Thanks, dad. Thanks for caring about me," I murmur as I fall asleep. I'm happy now, but I've worked all day long. I'm tired.

I wake up in the bed that used to be my mother's. I see her picture on the nightstand next to me and smile. She was a bright yellow troll with green hair – like a flower. Her name was Daisy. I wish I had gotten to know her, but she was taken the year before we escaped. It was the same year that we lost Rosiepuff, my father tells me. I was too young to remember her.

I always wondered why I didn't have a mother. My father told me when I was old enough, and from then on, I wanted to stop Trollstice for good. I didn't want to just hide from the Bergens until they found us again. I didn't want any more trolls to lose their parents or grandparents. Branch lost his whole family to the Bergens. I was lucky.

I was too scared to go looking for the Bergens and somehow stop them. Instead, I only started my quest after my friends had been taken. I marched on with relentless optimism, even after I almost died and Branch saved me. If I could just stay happy, everything would be okay. That's how life works in our kingdom. Things aren't the same in the wild forest.

That's what I need to learn. Being optimistic will solve some problems, but not all of them. From now on, I'm going to be a better queen. I'm not going to let myself go gray again. The kingdom needs me to be strong. I know that the world isn't all happy stuff, and I'm going to live with that. I've got to prepare for things instead of throwing parties all the time. I'm not going to change myself into Branch, I'll just be a little more cautious.

Now that I've decided how to change my reign as queen, I've got to get started. The party still has to be planned, after all! After thanking my dad again and saying goodbye, I make a list of things that need to get done for the party on my way to King Gristle's palace.

1\. Find a good place for both the Trolls and the Bergens. It can't be too big, or we'll never see anything. It can't be too small, or the Bergens will hit their heads.

2\. Pick the food. What do Bergens eat, anyway? Just trolls and pizza? That sounds depressing.

3\. Decorate the place. I wonder which colors, decorations, and fireworks they'd like?

4\. Pick the DJs. Obviously Suki, but I'm considering also having a Bergen DJ.

5\. Party! That should be easy – I've done it all my life.

Now that that's all settled, I'm getting to work. I spot Suki and Satin across the huge, Bergen-sized street, and wave. After the light changes, letting trolls cross, I run to meet them. "Where were you last night, princess?" Satin asks. "You missed the sleepover!" "I…" I know I shouldn't lie to my friends, but I don't want to tell them what happened. I didn't tell them before, because I can picture what would happen.

* * *

"You what?!" Cooper screams. "Sad? Gray?! This is awful! The kingdom will fall apart without you!" he shrieks after I tell the Snack Pack the news. "No – see, I'm better now!" I try to convince them. "Are you sure?" Chenille asks. "I think I see some gray in her hair," Biggie whispers to Guy Diamond. "Really, I'm fine! I'm just as happy as ever - " "She's not singing! She must be about to turn gray!" Smidge says in worry to the rest of the Pack. "I'm fine!" I shout. "Stop worrying!" They all gasp. I look in the mirror. I'm gray again.

* * *

In a split-second, I decide not to tell them. "I had some work to finish up. I'm sorry I forgot about the sleepover! I was just really tired after a long day –" "It's fine, girl! You can come tonight!" Suki interrupts. "Wait – you're having another sleepover?" I wonder. "Of course! It's not a real party unless you're there, after all. Now come on. We need to help you with your work so you won't be too tired. Let's go!" Suki shouts as they link their arms through mine and march me to the castle.

I'm not sure how well this will work out – after all, the only time my friends have met King Gristle in person is when he wanted to eat them – but I'm glad I have friends willing to do this for me.

* * *

Author's Notes

I'm sorry this chapter was late; I have a lot of homework. If you're not the type who enjoys the long strings of thought, don't worry. There will be more action in the next chapter. The first two are sort of setting the stage for the rest of the story. I plan to go back and forth between Branch and Poppy POVs unless there's a third point of view that would be really key to the story. I hope you like it! Thanks for the reviews!


	3. Chapter 3

Branch POV

I pace up and down the tree branch that my pod hangs off of. I look at my watch. Finally! It's time.

It's been two whole days since Poppy told me the (supposedly) good news. Two days! We haven't done anything. That's 26 hours of wasted time that the council could have used to make peace with the Bergens easier. Today, King Peppy has finally gotten himself together and organized the first meeting. I've been waiting for almost an hour with nothing to do. I would have gone earlier, but I didn't want to be the only one there, and since trolls tend to be late, I probably would have been. I stop pacing and start heading towards the trunk of the tree; towards the new room that the King asked the tree to make for us.

[I call him King because I'm not sure what else it would be. Lord, maybe? Just to be clear, Poppy is queen, but Peppy is helping her with various little things.]

I have no idea who the other trolls are, but I can only hope they're as prepared to get to work as I am. I walk through the tunnels in the tree (Poppy thinks she's the only one who knows about these) following the directions she delivered, and in about ten minutes, I arrive. I swing out and onto the leaf that's the welcome mat, and enter the room.

The room is filled with about fifty various trolls, some that I know. The woman whose birthday, wedding, and spouse's funeral I ruined is here, and her eyes say that she hasn't forgotten. If looks could kill, I'd be a zombie ghost. I wave nervously. She starts walking towards me, and I gulp. Just in time, King Peppy clears his throat, standing on top of a chair. "Welcome, all of you! Do any of you know why I've called you here?" He asks the crowd. "To party?" A bright orange troll guesses. "No..." the King says. Murmurs ripple through the air. No doubt, none of these trolls have ever gone anywhere for a reason other than partying, preparing to party, or something basically necessary.

"You are here because Queen Poppy is having a little trouble." "Oh, no! Wait – we're throwing a party to make her feel better, right?" A green troll guesses. "No! You will be taking on some of her work, either temporarily or permanently." King Peppy is starting to look a little frustrated now. "Oh! Are we going to plan the Bergen party for her?" The orange troll asks. These trolls are starting to get to me now, and I'm not even the one that has to tell them what they're doing. King Peppy gives up. "Branch, tell them what they're doing."

Great. "Me, your Honor?" I ask, hoping that there's another Branch in the room. There isn't; there's no other Branch in the whole kingdom, but it never hurts to hope. "Yes, you. Tell them why they're here and what they'll be doing." I stand up on a chair at the back of the room. Everyone turns around to look at me. "Well, what I've been told is that we're here to take over the legislative part of Poppy's work." "Legislative? What does that mean?" A more elderly troll asks. I sigh heavily. "Legislative means dealing with laws and enforcement of laws. In this case, we'll be working with King Gristle to make new laws about how the Bergens should treat us, and they'll make new laws about how we should treat them. Hopefully, if all goes well, the laws will help us get along peacefully."

I see five hands raised in the air. "Yes?" I ask. "What's a law?" "What's enforcement?" "Who's King Gristle?" "Why do we need this?" "Don't we and the Bergens already get along?" Like I said, trolls are idiots. I try to control myself and fail miserably. I scream. Quite literally. I let out the loudest yell I can, shaking the whole floor. "What is wrong with you? Didn't you ever learn anything besides singing, dancing, hugging, and scrapbooking?!" Silence fills the room. I realize that I'm asking them a ridiculous question. "N-n-no?" A timid troll ventures.

I sigh for the fortieth time this week. Yes, I keep track. I heard that if you sigh any more than a hundred times a month, you're a very annoying person. I'm trying to change. "I apologize for my outburst. I shouldn't have yelled. It's not your fault that you never learned anything useful. Now, what was the first question again?" "What's a law?"

Over the next two hours, I proceed to teach the trolls everything I know about legislation, and by the end of the session, we've made decent progress. They know the answers to the questions they asked, and some trolls have actually started on first drafts of possible laws. They're pretty quick learners, I've gotta give them that. King Peppy dismisses the meeting and everyone bustles out the door. I linger a little bit longer.

I approach the king with something that's been on my mind for a while. "King Peppy?" "Yes, son?" I try not to think too much about the last word. He probably calls all the trolls that. "Why were these specific trolls picked to be on the council?" He laughs, a chuckle building up to almost a roar rolling out as he leans on his cane. "They… they were picked for the smallest things. Good calligraphy to write the laws, a great team spirit to encourage cooperation: Poppy was sure that those qualities would make the best possible team."

I stand there with my mouth hanging open. "Wait… so… but… none of them knew anything about law? None of them were even required to know anything about what they were doing?" "Nope!" he proclaims, still chuckling. I smile. That's just like Poppy. Picking near-random people to form a team and hoping everything would work out okay. "Thank you, King Peppy!" "Goodbye, son! Have a great day!" Again, I ignore that word.

I head to the village center at the bottom of the tree to get something to eat. Maybe a blueberry jam sandwich? I haven't had one of those in ages. Actually, I haven't had one in twenty and a half years. I wait in line for the cart and think about Poppy. I haven't seen her in a while; usually she comes by every day. It's almost like she's been avoiding me. Probably not. I bet she's just busy.

I pay for the sandwich and feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn around and come face to face with King Peppy. "Son…" he wheezes. He must have run the whole way down the tree. Immediately I feel guilty for not helping him. "Have you… heard… about Poppy?" "What about Poppy?" I ask slowly. "I'm not sure if she wanted me to tell you, but I'm worried about her." "Why?" "She… she turned gray again yesterday."

I choke on my sandwich. Literally. I inhale a part of the bread and it gets lodged in my throat. I start to panic. I try to cough it out but I lose all the air I had left. I clutch my throat and try to breathe, but the air can't get to my lungs. I always thought I would die in a Bergen's mouth, not from something as easily avoided as choking. "Son!" I hear King Peppy shout. Many long seconds go by as I try desperately to pull air into my burning lungs. I'm more terrified than I've ever been. "Is he choking?" "Get some help!" I hear in the background. I fall off of the picnic bench. Everything sounds fuzzy and I can't see anything. _Air,_ I think as everything goes black.

* * *

Author's Notes:

Sorry for the cliffhanger. At this very moment, I am working on Chapter 4 and should have it up within a few days. Feel free to leave criticism if you want. Thanks for reading, I hope you like it!


	4. Chapter 4

Poppy POV

I'm walking back from Bergen Town on my way to see my father when I hear a huge racket. The sounds are coming from the village center. I turn and walk towards that area. "Call Poppy!" I hear someone scream. I sprint as fast as I can down the dusty road and then stop short.

Branch is unconscious on the ground.

Why is Branch unconscious on the ground? I realize that I've said this out loud and now there's a crowd of people all trying to explain at once. I can't understand anything they're saying and I'm trying not to panic because the love of my life is lying still on the ground and I can't help but think how much it looks like he's dead. "Quiet!" I shout. "One person at a time. Why is he unconscious and how long has he been?" My father says, "He choked, Poppy. He's only been knocked out for about a minute." "Good," I say.

I remember a book that I read on the brain. It said the brain can survive for four minutes without air. I can't think about what happens after that. I've got to act fast. I try to remember what comes before CPR. Right, check for breathing and clear the airway. I bend down close to Branch and the crowd steps back, making a sort of circle around him. I tilt his chin till it points up at a sunny sky and put my ear to his chest. I don't hear anything and I can feel his body getting colder.

I look in his mouth to see what he choked on. I take out a wet piece of bread and drop it on the grass. I wipe my hands on my dress, and think about what comes next. Compressions and breathing. I put my hands in the middle of his chest and push as fast and as hard as I can for a full minute. I check for breathing again. Still none. Time for the rescue breaths. I bend down over his face and pinch his nose shut. I give two of the biggest breaths I've ever taken. I stop and listen. They didn't go in. A wave of fear almost drowns me. I do two more breaths and it's only when I see water on his face that I realize I'm crying. I keep going, pushing and breathing and finally I stop, sitting back on my heels.

It's been three and a half minutes. I break down crying. I've got to save him. Shaky breaths come in and out and I realize I can't keep this up for long. I look down at Branch. Wiping the bucketful of water away from my face, I give him two final breaths.

I listen to his chest and hear a ragged, tired, slow, but steady breathing. The relief is huge. I gasp and check again just to make sure. Yes, he's breathing. His eyes slowly open. I hear him gasp, "Poppy…" as if I'm the greatest thing on earth. I sob, "Branch." He grunts as he tries to sit up and falls back down. I pull him into a sitting position and stare into his eyes. I'm sitting cross-legged across from him and his legs stretch out next to me. "Poppy," he says again, and grabs my face. He pulls me towards him and our lips connect. It's the most amazing feeling and I never want it to end. It's a gentle, soft, slow, but meaningful kind of kiss, and it only stops when I realize trolls are staring at us and we slowly pull away.

"I love you…" I say, half sobbing. "I love you too." Those words mean everything to me. I cry on his shoulder, still just overwhelmed by how close he was to dying. I know that I'd never be the same without him.

I help him up off the grass and together we slowly walk down the dirt road going back to the tree. I hear the crowd give a collective "Aww!" I resist the urge to cry again, and help Branch all the way up to his pod. I start to come inside, but he stops me. "I'll be okay," he says. "Are you sure?" I ask uncertainly. "Yeah… I've been hurt before. I can handle this." "Okay. I'll be right next door if you need me." I say, turning around. I'm out the door when I hear, "Poppy?" I can't get over how hoarse his voice sounds. "Yeah?" I ask. "Thank you." "I'd do anything for you, Branch." I mean it.

* * *

Author's Notes

Sorry again that it was late! Thanks for reading! I hope you like it! Anyone catch the Get Back Up Again reference?


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Branch POV

The next day, I wake up, get out of bed, and start pacing. The thudding as my feet hit the floor is rhythmic, and calms my otherwise rapidly rushing thoughts. Walking up and down in straight lines for hours always helps me think better. The first thing on my mind is Poppy. I can't believe she's the only one in the whole village who knows CPR. Like, isn't that pretty risky considering I almost died? I've got to fix that. Maybe a village-wide training session?

But, wow. She really cares enough about me to cry over me as she tried to save my life. So now, I guess we're even. Oh my gosh: Poppy! My mind flashes back to what King Peppy told me. Gray! I sit down on my bed and think about this. Poppy turned gray. Even though I've seen it happen before, gray Poppy seems to go against everything I know about the world. At least before, I could tell she was stressed from work, scared of failure, and nervous about the Bergens. Now, it seems like there's nothing to cause it. She was doing well, and didn't even look tired after working for twelve hours straight to get everything settled out. Why would she go gray? More importantly, why wouldn't she tell me? I get up and resume pacing.

I helped her before, and I'd be glad to help her again. Does she just not trust me anymore? I stop, standing still, realizing that I've said this out loud. I instantly want to take it back because if anyone trusts me, it's Poppy. She invited me to each and every party over and over and over again even when I broke her invitations and her heart over and over and over again. She believed that I could be happy when no one else did. She's the reason I am happy. And I'll always be in debt to her for that. I'll always care about her, so right now I need to go see if she's okay.

I run out the door and across the branch, my thoughts still a scrambled chain. I stand at her door for a minute. She's painted it completely hot pink. I can practically feel the toxins from the rhinestones, glitter, and sequins seeping into my brain. I knock three times, loudly. I listen for a while, and don't hear anything. I turn the knob and from behind the door, she shouts, "Who is it?"

"Branch," I say with my hand resting on the knob.

"No! No, uh, don't come in! I'm… uh… getting dressed!"

"Oh! Jeez!"

I turn back around and slam the door shut. After about five minutes I knock again. "Not yet, I'm not ready yet." She yells. That's pretty weird. Usually she gets ready to work in about two seconds.

Now that I think about it, she usually gets up an hour earlier than this, and goes to have breakfast with the rest of her friends.

"What's going on, Poppy?" I ask, warily.

"Nothing! Nothing's going on at all! I'm almost ready, just give me a few more minutes!"

I hear the nervousness in her voice.

"I'm coming in, Pop!" I say, giving her a warning in case she really is dressing.

"No, don't!" she says as I turn the knob. "Please, Branch. Please don't come in."

I hear the plea in her voice and stand still for a moment. I decide against leaving and open the door.

I stand in her doorway, staring for a minute. Just like Peppy said, she's gray. She tries to run into the tunnel under her bed, but I'm faster than she is and block the way. "Why… why didn't you tell me?" I ask. "I could have helped you!" I'm confused, hurt, and bewildered. "Branch..." She looks at me. Her pink eyes are filled with tears and anger. "You can't help me. Please… just go."

I stare at her, the world swimming in my unfallen tears. She stares back, with a mix of emotions: sadness, hatred, and hopelessness. I leave, quietly. As soon as I get out the door, I'm running down to the village center, almost flying. When I arrive, I ask the first person I see "Have you seen the Snack Pack?" The reply is no. I keep asking different people until I hear, "I think they're in Bergen Town?" Before he finishes his sentence, I'm off again, running until my lungs are burning as much as yesterday.

I stop at an intersection near the roller skating rink to catch my breath, and see them walking in my direction.

"Guys!" I yell, breathing heavily.

"Is that Branch?" I hear them mutter to each other.

When they reach me, I blurt out, "I need your help. Poppy's gray and I don't know what to do. She won't let me help her and I don't know if she's mad at me or not but I thought since you're her friends you'd know her better than I do and maybe –"

They cut me off. "Just tell us where to go, buddy," Chenille says. "She's in her pod," I tell them.

When we get there, they burst in without a second's notice. The room is empty – empty of a person, at least.

"She's not in here," I say, surprised.

"Yeah, no kidding," murmurs Biggie. I notice that the bed has been shoved away from the wall.

"The tunnels…" I mutter.

"What tunnels?" Cooper asks. I wordlessly walk towards the hole in the ground.

"I thought they were filled when we came back," Suki wonders.

"No… I thought it'd be a good idea to leave them just in case," I say. They don't say anything, but I can tell what they're thinking.

I drop down into the tunnel, the earthy smell filling my nostrils. "Shh," I say to the Pack, who are still in Poppy's room. I listen for a while, and I don't hear anyone in the tunnel. As I climb back out, they all ask at the same time, "Did you hear her?" I shake my head, looking sadly at the ground.

"Where else would she be?" I ask them. They stop and think for a while. "I've got it!" shouts Smidge. "She's probably with King Peppy!" "No, she's probably in the nursery!" says Satin. They come up with several more places where Poppy could be, and split up to look for her. "I'll stay here in case she comes back," I say.

I wait for hours for the Pack to come back. Finally, Guy Diamond slams the door open and collapses on the floor, the rest of them behind him.

"I looked everywhere I could think of…" he says, exhausted. "She isn't anywhere."

"Every place we went, people said she'd just left," Suki tells me. "It was so weird!"

"This is all my fault," I say, looking at the floor as the rest of them come in. "I should have stayed with her instead of leaving her alone. I should have talked to her… I should have helped her after all she did to help me."

"It's not your fault, Branch," says Biggie.

"Well, whose fault is it, then?" I realize I'm yelling. "Whose fault is it?" I whisper to the air. No one answers me.

* * *

Author's Notes

Sorry for the delay; I lost interest for a while. This fic should be ten to fifteen chapters long in total, so we're almost halfway there. I'll try to have the next chapter out in around a week. Thank you so much for the reviews!


	6. Quick Update

Hello, everyone!

I have a few announcements. One, thank you all so much for reading! As of 2/5/17, this fic has over 3000 views! I really appreciate your time. Two, thank you for the reviews. Thank you for telling me your thoughts on the story and encouraging me to continue. Lastly, I am taking the SAT later this month and need some extra time to prepare. Unfortunately, this means I probably won't be able to write a new chapter for about two weeks. Thanks for understanding!

Trolls4Ever

EDIT: I will need about a week longer to write the next chapter, so in the meantime, please bear with me! Also, I changed my username. I'm now LivinLovinLife99, if anyone's confused.


	7. Chapter 6

A feeling of guilt weighs my whole body down. I feel bad for making Branch leave, for looking at him as if I hated him when really I hate myself. I feel awful for leaving, for not staying to apologize because I knew he'd come back. I feel worst for trying to work and help trolls, but leaving as soon as I saw the Pack coming.

That's my job, isn't it? Helping trolls. And if I can't do my job right, then why am I even here? Why do I exist? Just to run away from my friends when they try to help me? I sigh. My skin blends in with the rocks around me, as I sit curled up in a ball near the edge of Bergen Town. The sky is turning pink as the sun sets, and it reminds me of what I'm supposed to be, where I'm supposed to be, and who I'm supposed to be.

I should try, I say out loud to myself. I owe it to everyone to at least try to snap out of this. I take deep breaths for two minutes, just like Creek taught me. I try to drown out the negative aura in my soul with positive thoughts. _Really?_ A voice in my head says. _You're trusting what Creek says? After he betrayed you?_ Ugh! I hate this. Every time I try to go back to my normal self, one thought brings it all down. That's all it takes!

Well, I don't think I'm going to be back to Poppy anytime soon, so I stand up and begin the long walk back to my pod. I'll have to figure out a way to function like this, at least for now. As I trudge along, I try to think things through and think about why I'm gray. I turned lost my color last night, after Branch and I walked up to his pod together. I kept thinking, what if I really am unqualified? I thought about all the mistakes that I'd made, and all the times I'd failed. I almost killed Branch because I didn't plan ahead and create a guideline for what to do if someone chokes.

That's what's causing this whole thing, I say to myself. My self-doubt. Are all those things really true? Am I really a horrible queen? I can't really puzzle that out right now, especially with the state my mind's in. I'm tired and aching, and all I want is to sleep. I'll think some more about these things tomorrow.

As I reach the base of the tree, I try extending my hair to grab the branch with my pod on it. It doesn't work. I run a hand through my gray hair, and see that it's much stiffer than it used to be. I guess I'll have to get up the hard way. Luckily, the slope of the tree is not steep, and with all the branches of the tree, it's fairly easy for me to climb up.

When I reach my pod, I hear voices inside. Loud, frustrated, worried, scared, sad voices. It occurs to me that my friends have spent all day looking for me without success. The guilt resurfaces. It's quickly followed by annoyance: I need to sleep! I don't want to inside and deal with all of the questions, like "Where have you been?" "What were you thinking?" and "Why did you leave?" I can't face that right now. So, I quietly walk farther down the tree branch and get to Branch's pod.

I silently open and close the door. The first thing I notice is that the room is almost completely dark. Even though the rest of the Tree still has traces of light, his pod is close to sunlight-proof. The curtains are closed, the door doesn't have a window, and the walls are a dark brown. However, some faint light comes in through the crack under the door. The second thing I notice is that it's not empty. He's sitting on the bed, shoulders moving up and down as he cries silently. I don't need light to tell that he's gray again. He hears me and turns around.

When he sees who it is, he draws in a deep breath very quickly. He stands up and walks toward me, a faint smile on his face, but tears still in his eyes.

"You're back," he says. "I'm so glad you're back."

"Why?" I ask him.

"What? What do you mean, 'why'? I love you!"

He's confused and looks almost hurt by this question.

"But, I'm not really back. I'm gray, I'm sad… I'm not me." I look down at the ground because it would hurt too much to look at him.

"That's not true, Poppy. You don't have to be happy all the time. I mean, yes, you tend to be happy, and I love that about you. But everyone feels sad from time to time. You have to let yourself be sad when you need to."

"Do I deserve it?" I ask him.

"Deserve what?"

"Do I deserve to be able to be sad? I'm taking time away from the trolls, not being able to help them. I didn't do anything today at all besides set back the kingdom! I've just been stupid, not thinking about them and –"

"Stop. Poppy, stop," he says in a firm but calm and quiet voice. "You deserve your time to figure things out as much as anyone else does. You work harder than anyone else I know – "

"Because it's my job!" I say. We've been quiet until now, but I'm almost yelling. "It's my job, my responsibility, and I can't even do it right! I got us captured by the Bergens, Branch! I almost got the entire troll population wiped out! Do you really think that's what a good queen would do?"

"Poppy – "

"NO!" I scream at the top of my lungs. I don't know why I'm so upset, but I can't stop yelling. "No, Branch! Stop trying to fix me! Stop trying to tell me it'll be alright and I'm perfect just the way I am! I'm not! I can figure things out for myself, thanks! I do NOT need you helping me!"

He stares at me, as though trying to figure out what I've just said. Then he turns around and walks toward the door. Before he leaves, he says, "Alright. Goodbye, Poppy." He's gone in a blink of an eye. I see the rest of my friends gathered outside my door, all shocked. I feel an emotion stirring, stronger than I've ever felt it before. As I turn and close the door, I'm able to name it.

Regret.

Author's Notes

I'd say sorry for being late again, but at this rate I'd be saying it after every chapter. From now on, I'll try to publish every 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month.


	8. Important Information

Alright guys, I'm sorry but I can't continue this story. I've lost interest in it and I don't have enough time, even an hour a week, to write it. The rest of it was going to be something like this:

"How could I have been so cruel?" Poppy thinks. "Branch, come back!" He keeps running. The next day, she goes looking for him, but can't find him. Other trolls have glimpsed him, which means he's avoiding her. Since he's brilliant at hiding in the forest, she'll never find him unless he wants her to. Branch turns gray and prepares to leave Troll village forever, going back to his bunker in the forest. As he's about to leave, the Snack Pack try to convince him to stay, but he says, "No one needs me anymore."

Enter Rosiepuff's point of view. She explains that a ghost gets one visit back to earth to change something important, then they can move on. She hears Poppy and Branch singing about their loss and goes to Branch telling him everything he needs to be happy again. She tells him that Poppy's a keeper. Branch goes back to the trolls and apologizes. Poppy does too. They cry on each other and get their colors back. But now, Branch is a tinge pinker, and Poppy is a tinge bluer. Every time two trolls get their colors back together, they blend a little bit. One year later, they get married. "This is the best day of my life," says Poppy.

If anyone is interested in writing this, you're welcome to. Again, I'm really sorry I couldn't finish the story but I guess life happens. BTW, this fic is called Get Back Home because I imagined Poppy staring out the window, Branch looking back at Troll Town, and they both start to sing Golden Slumbers by The Beatles (go look it up please). The lyrics say:

 _Once there was a way_

 _To get back homeward_

 _Once there was a way_

 _To get back home_

And this pretty much represents how they think they can't go back, can't change the past. There's no longer a way to get back home.

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this fic while it lasted! Hopefully I'll write another fic soon, and stick with it!

Ciao for now,

LivinLovinLife99


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